Researchers from Brand, Austria

On Friday, May 29, 2015, the Douglas County Historical Society hosted researchers from Brand, Austria for the day. DCHS member Delette Zimmel Huffman (on right) arranged for their research visit. Delette has made the connection from her ancestors in Douglas County, back to her Austrian roots. The family names of interest to the Austrian researcher were: Drexler, Zimmel, Trisko, Feda, Weisgram, Illetschko/Wagner, Adensam, Nebauer, Pfeffer and Schlosser. Those families emigrated from Brand, Austria, and homesteaded in Belle River Township, Douglas County, with the St. Nicholas Catholic Church as their parish. Their emigration was from the 1850’s to the 1890’s. Copies of those St. Nicholas Belle River church records are in our research library.
The town of Brand, Austria is planning for their 350th Jubilee in 2016. A jubilee-anniversary book is being compiled, and researcher Franz Illetschko (2nd from right) is writing the chapter about the emigrants to Douglas County, Minnesota.